25 February, 2010

I love cookies but rarely make them myself. Last night whilst I was wandering in my local market, I had a idea!

Most of the time when I want a cookie is in the afternoon...not when I'm home at night and either a) have to mix ingredients or b) be aware of the timer so I don't burn them.

My thought? Buy the pre-made cookies that you just break off and bake and bake them in toaster oven at work. Brilliant! This particularly fantastic machine has temperature settings (200-450 degrees!). Today, in the midst of doing work, I attempted to bake them.First try=burnt

Second try=crispy on the outside, uber gooey on the inside

Third try=fabulous! I turned down the settings so it wasn't so hot and they turned out golden bubbly.

18 February, 2010

I actually have an almost OCD obsession with them. If a nail color is chipped, I have to off all of the color and start again. It's annoying and fabulous all at once.

Grrr. Maybe I should get my license to do nails?! T'would be so fun!

My family has a tradition. We get our nails done together. My mom's birthday is the day after Christmas and prime time to get out of the house and do something fun. Doesn't it make you feel like a girl?

This photo was taken we all (all four girls and mom) got our nails done. It always has to include lunch or lattes so we can delicately pull out our wallets to show off the new buffed/clipped/polished hands.

16 February, 2010

I just had the best Valentine's Day. Not because it was romantic or gushy. It is because I got to spend it with people that I love.

Last weekend consisted of a jaunt out to one of my favorite areas...San Fransisco and the East Bay. Yay! More to come on my adventures later.

I was staying with Natalie (RA/friend in crime/shopping buddy/soul sister/coffee drinker) but was able to venture into San Jose for the actual love day. I spent it with Bre and Rose...both whom are dear friends from my college days.

My heart was so filled with love. I was able to reconnect with those two girls who know my heart and there was a peace about seeing them that I can't even explain. I wasn't sure if I'd see either one and the surprise of both was sweet!

As cliche as Valentines day, I was reminded how treasure-filled true friendships can be.

In the words of outkast, "happy val-en-tine-'s day...haaaaapy valentine's day. Every day's the 14th..."

09 February, 2010

I hate mayonnaise..so much so, that I'm not even sure I'm spelling it correctly. Anyway, my Aunt had posted this story about the mayonnaise jar and I thought it was completely ironic. Ironic, not in the story line, but in my hatred of mayo. Never mind that I couldn't NOT see what on earth could have to do with a jar formerly full of mayo. I had to see what she posted. Gag reflex ready to go. I just loved the story...so much so that I had to re-post.

I'm not sure who to credit for this, so I'll just give a shout out to my wonderful Aunt Marian!!

The story is fabulous!

The Mayonnaise (insert Kim's gagging sound-haha) Jar

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, When 24 hours in a day is not enough;remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy classand had some items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jarand started to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full.They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and pouredit into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else He asked once more if the jar was full... The students respondedWith an unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the tableand poured the entire contents into the jar, effectivelyfilling the empty space between the sand.The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things - Family,children, health, spirituality, friends, and favourite passions. Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else –

The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued,'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,You will never have room for the things that areimportant to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time

to clean the house and fix the dripping tap.

'Take care of the golf balls first -- The things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.

'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

08 February, 2010

Over the weekend, I let out my inner painter and got to work. I am helping with a fundraiser and the theme is Masquerade. Yahoo! Let the gold spray paint do some work.

To keep the cost as low as possible, I have been trying to get creative with the decorations. While all things decorations are important to make an event come to life, it is so crucial to use what I have so the most money can be put towards this humanitarian cause.

Well, what I found was that gold spray paint is my friend. Maybe best friend but I don't want to leave silver out.

Here's what I did:

1. Spray painted sticks/small branches. These will be put into big vases to hold the ornaments

2. Spray painted huge Christmas balls. I have a BUNCH of large Christmas bulbs. Since the colour scheme is reds and metallic, I took the other colour balls and spray painted them. These will hang from the spray-painted sticks

3. Spray painted canvases. Well I painted the canvas a neutral off-white and then sprayed on top, making sure to see the off-white around the edge of the canvas. From there I hand painted a giant mask. So easy and so fun!

4. Made table runners out of gold wrapping paper that I have. The big vase decorations will sit on top ot the runners. Looks great under dim lighting!

Total cost? $5 for two cans of spray paint. Using materials I already have and voi-la, centerpieces and decorations are done-zo! I still might spray paint some more bits but that is the "look" i'm going for.

04 February, 2010

Emersonmade makes all kinds of flowers. Seeing as I just attempted to jazz up my purse, I was sooo inspired by their ideas. Weddings, belts, hair clips, oh my! I think my favorite was this photo. How cute is the belt OVER the blazer?!? I donned a similar look today becuase I thought it was so cute.

02 February, 2010

The details? I got this red leather purse at Buffalo Exchange last week. I love it because I don't have a red purse. It's also quite vintage and that makes it unique too.

My inspiration came from a cardigan (yay!) that I bought at target. Attached to the cardigan was a flower pin. I thought, wouldn't this look good against my newly acquired red bag? I went to hobby lobby, bought a hot glue gun, some silk flowers, and pins. Voua-la.

I think it really spruces up the purse, right? The best part is that this accessory is not obligated to always be on the red purse. It can change. Yahoo. It was so fun:)

New Friends

Labels

A quote to live by

“it's not enough to have lived. we should be determined to live for something. may i suggest that it be creating joy for others, sharing what we have for the betterment of personkind, bringing hope to the lost and love to the lonely.”—dr. leo